>> ending in failure. lakhdar brahimi talks with the russians and americans with no solution for the syrian consulate. hello again, everyone. this is al jazeera. more on the top stories. malian government troops recaptured a strategic town with the help of french air strikes. celebrations in central africa as the government signed a cease-fire deal with the rebels. police in the u.k. unveil a report detailing 50 years of sex abuse by one of britain's biggest tv stars.

it is yet another fail for the party is trying offer a solution to serious conflict. american and russian diplomats meeting in geneva for five hours. the only thing they could agree on is talking some more. when it came time for the u.s. special envoy to the region to address reporters, all he could do was expressed sympathy for syria. >> we are all very deeply aware of the immense suffering of the syrian people. it has gone on for far too long. we all stressed the need for a speedy end to the bloodshed, to the destruction, and also the violence in syria. we stress again that, in our

view, there was no military solution to this conflict. >> the suffering of the people continues inside the country. video uploaded by activists accuse -- apparently shows the government shelling a village. al jazeera cannot confirm this. more under allied video from outside of the northern city shows a government attack where rebel forces are blocking an oilfield. the government dropped phosphorus bombs. the rebel group has won a major victory in the idlib province. fighters taking over the base. >> loading up their winnings after taking syria's largest helicopter base. these are one of five independent rebel groups to overrun the air base.

something the fsa pill did -- failed to do over the past two months. it took two days of intense fighting. according to a defective the tenant, soldiers were still holed up in two buildings inside the airport. in the end, they either run away or were captured by the rebel groups. also captured, helicopters still working, left stranded on the tarmac. >> we surrounded it for seven days and stormed the base. fighters from many areas. we have one victory. >> the commander was cut short. as we were interviewing the leader, we could hear planes flying overhead. everybody scrambled. we are now hiding in a building. even though fighters have taken

control, the regime is sending fighter jets to try to take it back. victory for the anti-government forces would mean an end to the daily attacks on the free syrian army and towns and villages throughout idlib province. one man told us he was from north africa. others from egypt, tunisia, and libya. i asked the commander if they were affiliated with al qaeda. >> why is the west criticizing al qaeda? why are they against al qaeda? they criticize al qaeda because they fight for their rights. whether we are al qaeda or not, we are muslims. we fight for our rights and will not give them away. if we are with al qaeda or not, we will fight for our rights. we waited for the arab league and the u.s. have you seen them accomplish anything? >> i asked if it would hand over the land to the free syrian

army. he said originally sold the land from the farmers and peasants. maybe they should get it back. >> saudi arabia has granted women seats to the top revisory council. women are not allowed to travel, work, study abroad, mary, gain admittance to a public hospital. without permission from a male guardian. the council reviews laws but does not have legislative powers. a fire killed 13 people in bahrain's burned through a three-story building. the nationalities and victims have yet to be announced. investigators are on the way to determine the cause of the fire. the malian army has retaken a strategic town from al qaeda- linked fighters who controlled large parts of the north. france backed up their military by launching a -- an air strike.

more from paris. >> molly's beleaguered army is losing ground to al qaeda rebels in the north. the government is desperate for help. the united nations has given its support with 3300 troops from a block of west africa and neighboring nations. the first of those troops will be deployed immediately. mali's old colonial master has confirmed reports its troops are already on the ground there. >> i have responded to mali's request for help. this afternoon, french armed forces supported mali's forces to fight against the terrorists. this operation is within the framework of the un resolution and will last as long as necessary. >> on the streets of mali, people are getting nervous about how close the front lines are. >> we are afraid.

we are afraid because they could take us hostage. >> i think that islamists must be stopped with the aid of the international community because they will not stop here. it is the whole region. europe and the rest of the world there will a tried to attack. >> the situation has prompted the malian president to declare a state of emergency. >> the malian government has decided to proclaim a state of emergency according to all of the international criteria. each malian must, from now on, consider themselves a soldier of the country and act accordingly. >> the presence of french fighting forces and rebel air strikes so -- show francois hollande's previous stance has changed and poses questions

about how this fits within the un's framework. >> it is posted the malian soldiers making up the main combat force with other countries providing training and logistical support. france's current involvement seems to be stretching the interpretation of that somewhat. >> malia's government is paris government is perilously week. the conflict is sucking in more and more countries. >> the united states says it is following the french military intervention in mali shortly but stopped short of committing its own troops. >> we remain deeply concerned by the recent events in mali. we echo the international community's combination of these recent aggressive acts. we joined in a very strong security council statement on this last night. we do understand that france has offered some immediately millet

-- some immediate military support to mali armed forces at the request of their government. we are consulting closely with the government of france going forward. >> central african republic's president has signed a cease- fire deal with rebels after three days of negotiations. he will finish his term, which ends in 2016. he will give up some of his powers in the national unity government he has agreed to form. >> signing up for peace. this is far more than a cease- fire agreement. this is a deal that will transform politics in the central african republic. >> a government of national unity will be formed. responsible for organizing elections, which will happen at the assembly. the government will include and

be headed by the prime minister. >> just a few days ago, he was calling the rebels terrorists. now they are friends and future colleagues. there will be integrated into a new government and a new national army. >> when the government is in place, we will then plan a new army. it will be a new national republic. >> the group also calls for foreign troops to begin leaving. no time frame has been given. a force made up of central african nations will stay to make sure the cease-fire remains in place. regional leaders may be congratulating themselves on a deal which they say is a tangible and permanent. we have been here before. there was a peace accord which was signed here in 2008. a deal which then disintegrated. the opposition admits it is not going to be easy.

>> obviously, it is going to take courage from both parties, the opposition as well as the government. to permanently find a way. >> the president heads back to the central african republic with his power considerably weakened. a nation that was on the brink of war now a step closer to peace. >> a military coup has been europe -- averted in the central african republic for now. there is a long history of instability in the country. in 1992, the president who came to foul -- who came to power by force in 1991 was pressured to hold elections. there were three serious mutinies in the mid-1990's. the elected president was kicked

out and coup'ed by the current president. by 2009, he reached peace agreements with the main rebel factions. that alliance of rebels came close to overthrowing him, saying that the government has not honored its deal. reaction to the latest agreement from the central african republic capital. >> the president has arrived back in the capital, a city still under curfew but overwhelmed by the scale of this agreement. he ensured his people in a radio address that the airports, cities, and every point in the signed agreement. that means a reduction of his powers. he will not be able to dissolve parliament again. elections will stay in place until the end of his term. there is an immense amount to be done. the rebels have to be brought into the fold, a new army

formed. there has to be a pullback of the rebel forces from 12 towns. that could be an immense job. there has to be a major humanitarian campaign to relieve hundreds of thousands of people who fled to the bush as the rebels advanced in this remarkable move to the capital. only 75 kilometers away is a red zone that needs to be policed. he appears to have conceded beyond anyone's expectations. it is a long time before the next parliamentary elections and there is an immense amount to do. >> afghanistan's forces will take control of security in the country by the spring. that is sooner than the previous timetable, which was planned on being over by the summit -- by the summer. this was after president ahmed

-- president obama met president karzai in dc >> he entered the white house for what appeared to be an animated leading -- animated meeting. both came with a long wish list. each appeared to get a little something. karzai, controlling the country's prisons. >> we agreed on the complete return of detention centers and detainee's to afghan sovereigns. this will be implemented soon after my return to an afghanistan. >> the u.s. president was able to announce afghan troops will take the lead in security sooner than expected. >> let me say it as plainly as i can. starting this spring, our troops will have a different mission. training, advising, assisting afghan forces. >> not answered, how fast u.s.

troops will leave and if any will remain after 2014. the u.s. president made sure to leave it an open question. >> if we have a follow on course of any sort. >> many believe that is his way to force concessions from karzai as they negotiate a security agreement. experts say is unlikely afghan securities will be able to step -- to stand on their own. >> they cannot supply themselves, do not have the artillery they need. there will need to be some of that retained by the united states. >> that is an open debate in washington between the u.s. military, pushing for upwards of 15,000 troops, and the obama administration, which will likely look to leave just a few thousand. the president said he will make these two decisions in the coming months.

>> a reminder of the top stories on on jazeera. opposition fighters in syria have taken control of the top air base, the largest military air base in northern syria. u.s. and russian diplomats met again to discuss the violence but failed offer a solution. control of has taken a strategic town. france launched an air strike to back up mali's military. the central african republic's government has signed a cease- fire agreement with an alliance of rebel groups. in national unity government will be formed under the terms of the deal. taking a bible to her venezuelan counterpart, hugo chávez, undergoing cancer treatment in cuba. lending to a sport -- lending

support to the man who stood by her when no one else would. >> she tweeted earlier today about bringing a bible. she said she would hopefully meet with family members. she did not make a clear statement that she would meet with chavez himself, which may be because he is not in the condition to received visitors. not much coming about the status of hugo chávez's health. he has been here more than a month now. in that time, we have seen and heard nothing of him. this is a big deal considering it is one of the most charismatic and outspoken leaders in regions across the world. a lot of uncertainty swirling around his health, if you will get better, or uncertainty out over whether he will return to power. on thursday, massive street demonstrations in caracas, the

capital of venezuela. he was supposed to take another oath of office for this term. he was able to secure the freedom to go back whenever he recuperates and take the oath of office, but the fact that he was absent on a very significant day and that he has not spoken or been seen before cameras in the month he has been in cuba has increased these uncertainties swirling around his health and made people wonder how bad he is and if he will make a return to caracas or not. >> in venezuela, opposition against the decision to delay his inauguration. around 100 students gathered to express concern over a lack of leadership. one of the first anti-government protests since hugo chávez left the country. police in los angeles have rescued 14 people after an armed robbery at a shopping mall. the robbers held the workers hostage in one of the stores for four hours. police officers and special

weapons team surrounded the mall and entered the store. no one was hurt, but the robbers escaped. there have been more protests by groups campaigning for the rights of indigenous people in canada. at the forefront is one woman chief. she has been on hunger strike for more than a month, demanding the government pay more attention to her community's needs. >> inside a wooden stockade, she refuses solid food for more than a month. in her first public appearance in days, she said the canadian government is not showing her people the respected deserve. >> it is important to renew this relationship. this government has been abusing us, raping the land. >> this is the movement inspired by it theresa spence. their campaign has left canada recently and demonstrations to

block rail lines and border crossings. they want to complete self- government for nations groups. like the occupied movement that started in the u.s., it is making meeting with the government a challenge. >> they express a generalized anger and frustration. perfectly understandable, completely justified. for progress to be made in the political process, it takes a leader with specific demands that can be examined or not. >> not all of the representatives went to the meeting. some agreeing with theresa spence, the agenda was too vague. protesters in the streets. instead of going to the parliament building, as was planned, the protesters have stopped outside the canadian prime minister's office.

there are moving to surround the building to make sure their demands are heard inside. so far, this grass-roots movement has not achieved the change it wants. they have brought their issues into the center of political debate. they may be a fractured group divided from traditional leaders, but the movement is growing. more confrontation lies ahead. >> for police officers have been injured during continued violence related to union flag protests in northern ireland. police fired water cannons and plastic bullets. hundreds of protesters attacked them with brick and -- with bricks and bottles. unrest has been some the worst since the 1998 peace deal. a report into the alleged sex crimes committed by a british television star reveal decades of abuse. he committed more than 200 crimes against adults and children. more from london.

>> the report says jimmy was a prolific predatory sex offender and the scale of his abuse was unprecedented. the report was called "giving victims a voice." since he died in 2011, true justice for his many victims is no longer achievable. revealing his abuse gives victims the recognition they never had at the time. he was an eccentric personality, his career spanning six decades. he started as a radio dj, hosted his own tv shows, developed a parallel career as a charity fundraiser after working in hospitals. the common denominator to all this, a vulnerable young people. >> that is the cloak that he hid behind to abuse society. it was that all -- that power that he exploited. >> accusations were made against him in five -- by five women in 2012. the floodgates have opened. police reported 214 criminal

offenses committed across the uk between 1955 and 2009. 73% of its victims were under 18. the youngest was just eight. 82% were female. the sheer scale of his crimes -- so many victims over so many years. while he was working at the heart of so many trusted u.k. institutions, the report does not adequately explain that catastrophic failure, but says it hopes this is a watershed moment. >> if you go back into this, children would have said that something is happening that i am not comfortable with. they would have told somebody. there were not taken seriously. >> the report talks of the tragic consequences of one of vulnerability and our collide. -- and power collide. when victims did speak out, no

one believed them. today's report says that much never happen again. >> learning about science may become a thing of the past for school children in indonesia. the government wants to cancel science class is to make more room for religion and nationalism. teachers say it is a move backwards. >> learning about the newton laws of motion by launching a rocket. it is a fun exercise for children around the world. indonesian children might soon miss out on such experiments. if the government goes ahead with its plan to take science out of the curriculum. >> science is cool, lots of useful objects can be made through science. with science, we can create unique objects. when i grow up, i want to be a professor in biotechnology. professor in biotechnology.